Mother review – Noomi Rapace is a fanatical Mother Teresa full of fury

Rapace plays the canonised Kolkata nun with hard-bitten intensity in a complex, lurid story that veers between faithful telling and bouts of funThe convent is a pressure cooker in this fevered, energetic account of a pivotal week in the life of the young Mother Teresa, which jump-starts the Orizzonti sidebar at this year’s Venice film festival. Macedonian writer-director Teona Strugar Mitevska ticks down the days from seven to one and wrings a performance of flayed, hard-bitten intensity from Noomi Rapace, who marches down the corridors with a face full of fury. Rapace is a long way from her breakout role in The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo; tonally, though, not so much. If Mother Teresa never goes so far as to set about the sisters with an axe, the sense that she might injects Mitevska’s film with a pleasing dose of danger.It is 1948, we’re in the broiling heart of Kolkata and Sister Teresa has tired of her teaching role at the Loreto Entally convent. “I’m a woman in a system run by men,” she complains to sympathetic Father Friedrich (Nikola Ristanovski), although she has also heard a call from the big man upstairs. Continue reading...

Comments

Culture

‘Perfect’ 90s horror movie is coming to Amazon Prime Video very soon

Metro

Comments

Similar News

‘A movie star turn of the highest calibre’: we were wrong about Mother! – and Jennifer Lawrence

My Mother, New Orleans

Wynonna Judd’s daughter Grace Kelley accuses mother of ‘covering up’ stepfather’s sexual abuse

Sharon Stone reveals her mother’s shocking final words in candid interview

The best mother-daughter movies of all time

Malqueridas review – blurry phone footage takes us inside Chile’s prisons with incarcerated mothers

Rapper stops concert to scold mother for ‘irresponsible’ act with baby

Mother-daughter dynamics dominate an ambitious second season of 'Wednesday'

‘My Mother’s Wedding’ Review: Daddy Issues

Brad Pitt’s mother Jane dies aged 84

Consumed review – mothers and daughters clash in Women’s prize for playwriting winner

‘A psychological umbilical cord’: Why fiction loves difficult mothers

The horrifying moment baby spiders swarm to eat their mother will make you scream

Bob Geldof accuses Israel of 'dangling food in front of starving, panicked, exhausted mothers'

Mother of Cameron Boyce thanks Adam Sandler for ‘honouring’ her son in Happy Gilmore 2

Mother-eating spiders ‘will chill parents to the bone’ in new David Attenborough series

Love Island: Shakira’s mother refuses to hug Harry after Helena fallout

Culture

‘Perfect’ 90s horror movie is coming to Amazon Prime Video very soon

SNL cast member announces they’ve been axed from the show after ‘gut punch of a call’

Emma Heming Willis: Bruce Willis is in ‘great health’ but ‘brain is failing him’

TV viewers will be horrified as Christmas TV channel launches 111 days early

Orlando Bloom makes Legolas revelation ahead of next Lord Of The Rings film

Orlando Bloom: I would hate to see anyone else as Legolas in Lord Of The Rings

Record-breaking drama that had viewers ‘turning off after 5 minutes’ renewed for second series

The headteacher who saved my school died last month – tonight he stars on The Chase

Lily Collins sparks backlash after post fails to pay tribute to late Emily in Paris director

Want to be a world record holder?&#160;These are still available

Nazi-looted painting 'spotted in property listing'

Banksy's piranhas police box put in protective storage ahead of museum display

Ex-Sky presenter diagnosed with stage-four prostate cancer says men should 'demand' a test

Contents of Princess Diana's 1990s time capsule revealed

KPop Demon Hunters becomes Netflix’s most-watched film of all time

Much-loved presenter gets gold Blue Peter badge 31 years after her final episode

So long, London boys – Taylor Swift is engaged to the all-American Travis Kelce, and it makes so much sense

Dermot Murnaghan calls for improved prostate cancer screenings as he details stage four diagnosis

Caught Stealing review – Thin material for Austin Butler and an all-star cast

Bimini says Celebrity SAS was ‘a challenge I needed’

Top gigs in London this weekend: Idris Elba, Addison Rae and Rudimental

The Repair Shop viewers left tearful as couple discover secret message from late son

Juniper Blood at the Donmar Warehouse review: a poor retread of Mike Bartlett's better work

Suede at the Southbank Centre review: they came, they saw, they dazzled

Diana’s 90s time capsule contained Kylie CD and pocket television

Netflix series that saw man poop in a bag is making a nightmarish return

Strictly pro who left fans gutted missing 2025 series admits he’s ‘relieved’

Paul Gallagher, older brother of Liam and Noel, appears in court charged with rape

Angela Scanlon says ‘creepy’ guest asked her inappropriate question seconds before live interview

EastEnders star returns to BBC series 22 years after official exit

‘I am devastated and furious’: 12 actors controversially recast in films

SNL’s Devon Walker calls show ‘sometimes toxic as hell’ as he announces exit

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are ‘crazy about each other’ – NFL star’s father

Billie Eilish launches signature Uno deck with Mattel

Blind date takes shocking filthy turn minutes in: ‘Is he being creepy?’

David Mitchell says the term ‘mansplaining’ is unfair

‘I found my daughter’s body after she was murdered – I couldn’t let her killer get away with it’

This ‘unreleasable’ new horror film is a kitsch bloodbath for the sickos

With Love, Meghan season 2 review – Watching this is like being gaslit by a multimillionaire

Lightyear should have been a dire warning to Disney – and no, Snoop Dogg, not because of its gay kiss

Meghan Markle reacts to awkward Suits moment on her new Netflix show

Woody Allen responds after Ukraine slams director for appearing at Russian film festival: ‘Disgrace and insult’

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce engaged – live: Meghan, William and Kate, and Trump lead reactions to engagement news

King & Conqueror review – Battle of Hastings drama is almost unwatchably dark

The Roses review – Olivia Colman and Benedict Cumberbatch are relentlessly entertaining

I’m a film critic at Venice 2025 – I can’t wait for these 10 movies

Trump, a vocal Taylor Swift critic, reacts to her engagement with Travis Kelce

Kpop Demon Hunters becomes Netflix's most viewed film ever

'I immediately freaked out' - Taylor Swift's engagement sends fans into frenzy

Former Weeki Wachee Mermaids return to the springs as seniors

‘Alien: Earth’ Season 1, Episode 4 Recap: In Sheep’s Clothing

This Couple Predicted Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s Relationship 5 Years Ago

The Repair Shop viewers left ‘in tears’ after heartbreaking episode

Channel 4 viewers ‘driven bonkers’ over biased social experiment show

Some young people ditching dating apps and opting for old-fashioned alternatives

Jenny Slate shares a memory she'd like to relive

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s Relationship Timeline and Big Moments

Passage to India is a surprisingly moving Yorkshire Vet special

The Jury: Murder Trial could change our legal system forever

Perrie Edwards proudly shows off scar in new single teaser video

Want to be a world record holder? These are still available